by The Pioneer of Office Automation and Mechanical Calculation
This nomination for William Seward Burroughs, who in 1885 patented a practical, printing adding machine. Earlier calculating devices like the arithmometer existed, but Burroughs’ machine was reliable, produced a printed record, and was designed for the accounting departments of businesses. He founded the American Arithmometer Company, which later became the Burroughs Adding Machine Company. His invention automated the tedious, error-prone task of manual addition and subtraction, becoming a staple of banks, insurance companies, and corporate offices. The adding machine proved that office work could be mechanized to improve accuracy and speed, representing a key step in the journey from pen-and-ink ledgers to electronic computers. It demonstrated that there was a vast market for machines that enhanced mental labor, just as earlier machines had enhanced physical labor.
